The Top Players of the Future

We all admire and have watched veterans of the game such as Magnus, Hikaru or Fabi. However, as these players are aging, younger talents are slowly taking over the chess scene. However, while players such as the World Champion Gukesh, speed demon Alireza Firouzja, top 5 player Abdusattarov and other young top players such as Pragg or Keymer overtake the chess scene, there are still younger players waiting in the sidelines for their opportunities.
These are the players younger than 16, who whether 3 or 15, have shown extreme potential. These players are the incredible next generation. These players are the future.
Note: These players are not ranked in order and are just players I have come across or researched.

Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus

This Turkish GM might be only 14 this year, but his rating makes this hard to believe. With a classical rating of 2605, it would be easy to believe he spends all his time on slow chess. However, Erdogmus also excels in speed chess, with his peak chess.com blitz rating over 3200. Not only does Erdogmus handily top all other players born in 2011, but he is also higher rated than every player born in 2010 or 2009!! These other players include well known prodigies such as Andy Woodward, Shreyas Royal, and Abhimanyu Mishra all older than Erdogmus. This prodigy keeps racing on, and he's not stopping anytime soon!

Image credit: thezugzwangblog.com

Faustino Oro

Called "the Messi of chess", this Argentinian prodigy has shown an incredible level of talent. Breaking records for youngest 2200, 2300 and IM, with a rating just shy of 2430, Faustino is an incredibly strong player. His chess.com blitz rating is over 3100 and he's gained fame from defeating both Hikaru and Magnus online. This record smashing 11 year olds is one to watch for the future!

Image credit: ole.com.ar

Bodhana Sivanandan

Turning 10 years old only this last week on March 7th (Happy Birthday Bodhana!), Bodhana Sivanandan has showed an unbelievable level of talent. While she started playing chess in 2020 during the lockdowns, by 2023 at the age of 8 Bodhana won the European Women's Blitz Championship--an unbelievable achievment at her age! During the 2024 Olympiad, Bodhana became the youngest ever member of a full English team for any sport. Mentored by the legend Judit Polgar, Bodhana has a bright future as she passes 2100 and beyond!

Image credit: Sky News (news.sky.com)

Anish Sarkar

It is an impressive thing to see a child under 10 playing chess well. However, it is nearly unbelievable when we see 4-year-old Anish Sarkar play chess. While it is not guaranteed that Sarkar will be playing chess in the future (as with the 3-year-old Misha who played Karpov), at 3 years, 8 months, and 19 days, Sarkar became the youngest player with a FIDE rating, and that being 1555! Though he might not be able to reach the pieces without climbing onto the table, he may be able to reach a very high level in chess. Already, he has knowledge of basic checkmating patterns, impressing even players such as Magnus Carlsen. Sarkar is not just very cute to watch but also has incredible potential!

Image credit: Chessbase India

Ethan Pang

Ethan Pang is not as prominent yet, but acute chess observers know that Pang broke Faustino Oro's record for youngest 2200 and later youngest 2300 in history. With a rating of 2257 at the miniscule age of 9, Pang has a very bright future and shows some incredible potential.

Image credit: chesspark.com

Roman Shogdzhiev

This Russian prodigy only turned 10 last month but already has achieved an incredible amount in the chess world. 2023 World U8 champion, Shogdzhiev also beat 5 GMs in the 2023 World Rapid and Blitz Championship. He is one of three players, along with Ethan Pang and Faustino Oro, to reach 2300 before age 10. He broke Oro's record of being the youngest player to achieve an IM norm, which he did at 9 years and 10 months. At a tremendous rating of 2348, this youngster has a very bright future!

Image credit: attackingchess.com

Miaoyi Lu

Lu is the number 2 junior female player, after Divya Deshmukh, who is 5 years her senior. Only turning 15 this last month, Lu is already rated 2435 and represented China in the 2024 Olympiad. The number 1 U18 girl in the world, Lu has a very bright chess future ahead of her.

Image credit: chesspark.com

Conclusion

There are many other brilliant youngsters who could be on this list, let me know in the comments section who you think I missed or who you think will become a top player in the future! If you enjoyed this article I would love if you liked or followed, so you don't miss articles in the future! Bye!